Save Me
by Cheeseball417
Summary: The summer after the war ends, Hermione is invited to return to Hogwarts as one of four Heads. Forced to share a common room with three others, Hermione undergoes a year of adventure and romance.
1. Chapter 1

"Stay the hell away from my daughter." The young mother growled at the approaching figure, "She has done nothing! Nothing! She can hardly sit up on her own."

"Ah, and yet she will certainly be a problem for me in the future. And so she must go." The man produced his wand from beneath his travelers robes, "Would you care to join her?" The woman cradled her daughter at an awkward angle, trying to both shield the girl with her body and face their attacker. "Avada-"

Hermione Granger stared down at the two bodies. A brunette and a redhead. Her eyes brimmed with tears. They had died only a week ago. They had survived the war only to die in an automobile accident.

"Ms. Granger. Can you identify these two?" The kind coroner, wishing to speed up the process, asked the girl.

Hermione took a shaky breath in, "Yes. That's them."

"I need you to confirm their identities. Please, I need their names." The older women held Hermione's gaze, trying to comfort her from afar.

"This," she pointed to the redhead, "Is Wendell Granger. And that is Monica Granger. They were my parents."

"Thank you, dear. Now please, let us step outside to discuss further arrangements." The woman ushered Hermione out the door, but not before she saw her parents' bodies sliding back into the body coolers.

"Pep up, Malfoy!" Zabini more or less danced around him as the two walked out of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. "You've been acquitted! Free and clear! Old voldy's gone! We are free to live our lives." Zabini spun in a circle with his arms extended, still following as the blonde man pushed open the doors to the main atrium.

Draco sneared over at his darker friend who stood wide eyed at the sight before them, "'Free to live our lives' huh, Zabini?" The two men began the slow and arduous journey through the sea of reporters.

"What? He's free?!" Ginny cried out, reading the front of Mr. Weasley's _Daily Prophet._

"Who's free, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked from the sink, where she had four sponges scrubbing away. Ron and Harry both looked over from their seats in the adjoining den.

"Him! Malfoy!" Ginny grimaced at the picture of their school-time archenemy plastered on the _Prophet's _front page.

"There was no physical proof against him." Mr. Weasley stated, without looking away from his current article. Upon hearing his daughter's protest regarding a dark mark, Arthur continued, "His dark mark was forced upon him under extreme duress. His father in Azkaban and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named moving into his home? Even I agreed the dark mark could not be counted against him. After that they analyzed his magic, the boy never once cast an unforgivable curse and very few that could be interpreted as malicious." Ginny began arguing, but her father reminded her of her Bat-Boogey hexes and the girl fell silent.

"But, how did they test his magic, like all of it? We took his wand. So all that stuff went away." Ron spoke with his brow furrowed.

"If they used the Weltch Charm they can test any spell he's ever cast from age eleven onward regardless of what wand, if any, was used." A new voice answered as a weary Hermione slouched through the door.

"'Mione! You're back!" Ron's face lit up as he looked at his girlfriend. Harry stood up and walked past the still lounging Ron. He hugged his best friend, pulling away only to hold her by the shoulders and smile down at her, "You know we would've came with you. All you needed to do was let us."

"Thanks, Harry, but it was just something I had to do on my own." Harry let his hands drop and gave her a bit more breathing room. "Mrs. Weasley, I found Errol on the ground outside. I returned him to his coup, here are the letters he had." Hermione handed the pile to Mrs. Weasley before sitting in the armchair Harry had vacated.

"Ginny, here's your Hogwarts letter. We'll go shopping for supplies tomorrow." Mrs. Weasley continued through the stack, "How strange! There are letters for you three as well!" Mrs. Weasley crossed the room to hand the three their letters.

"What!" Ginny exclaimed for the second time that morning.

"Ah the Hogwarts Express! How I've missed thee!" Malfoy enjoyed Blaise's company, truly he did. But a week in, he had regretted allowing his Italian friend to move into the Manor with him. Too peppy, too loud.

"I thought I'd never have to see this hunk of metal again." Malfoy shot the scarlet engine a glare even Voldemort was not worthy of. "Forcing us to repeat a year. Fuck that! I did my time."

"Calm down, Mr. Head Boy. With you in charge it won't be too bad." The two followed their hover-charmed their trunks into the train.

Hermione still couldn't believe her luck. A chance to finish her education! A dream come true. She sat in her compartment, alone for the first time since her first trip to Hogwarts. Even two months later, she was shocked that the boys had declined this glorious offer. Hermione pulled the worn sheet of paper out of her pocket and read the words she had already committed to memory. On the first sheet:

_Headmistress: Minerva McGonagall_

_(Order of Merlin, First Class)_

_Dear Ms. Granger,_

We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl no later than 31 July.

Yours truly,

Filius Flitwick

Deputy Headmaster

On the second sheet:

Dear students,

Due to last year's circumstances, Hogwarts is offering the chance for all students to repeat their previous year of schooling. New teachers are on staff to accommodate the larger than normal first year class.

Please respond with your desired year no later than 31 July.

Hoping you are well,

Minerva McGonagall

Headmistress

And the final letter, by far the most creased of the three, as it was the one that Hermione had read the most:

Dearest Hermione,

I am so sorry to hear about the death of your parents. My sympathies go out to you in your time of grief. If any need arises, know you can contact me immediately.

On a lighter note, I look forward to welcoming you back to our school and truly hope you will be attending your final year. Further more, I would like to inform you of additional policy changes. This year the prefects will be governed by four Heads, one from each house. I would like to extend to you the offer of Head Girl of Gryffindor.

As Head Girl of Gryffindor you will be responsible for continuing your duties of prefect while also overseeing your fellow prefects. Vague, I am sure, but we will discuss the business of the appointment at a greater length upon your arrival at Hogwarts.

Please respond as soon as possible with both your intent to enroll and your interest in this new position.

Yours-

Professor McGonagall

"You sure I can't come in?" Pansy pouted, clutching onto Draco's forearm. She had gotten even clingier once Draco inherited the entire Malfoy fortune.

"It's the Heads compartment, Parkinson, and I don't believe you're a Head." Draco yanked his arm loose and slid through the door, quickly closing and latching it behind him.

"Malfoy! I told you so!" A voice exclaimed from behind him. Malfoy turned to face three other students.

Michael Corner, the exclaiming voice, sat near the window, riding forward. He would be the Ravenclaw Head. Draco had never had any direct issues with the boy, perhaps they could be allies in this dreadful, repeated year.

Susan Bones sat beside Michael with her feet had been resting on the vacant seat across from her. She was the Hufflepuff, the one who had lost her entire family due to his family's cause during the war. He would need to apologize for his involvement somehow.

And finally, at the window, riding backwards, sat the Gryffindor Head Girl. Asleep. Hermione Granger, the muggle born he had tormented for the previous near-decade, hell, lay asleep with a book in her lap. Malfoy felt a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth. _Never without a book, that Know-it-all._

"Sit!" Susan exclaimed, far too welcoming to be convincing. Draco took the seat nevertheless. "The four of us will be sharing a common room this year, so I figured we should let bygones be bygones. What do you say Draco, or do you prefer Malfoy? Or…" He watched the girl become uncertain under his cold gaze.

"Either is fine. Susan? Correct. And Michael?" The two nodded. He liked Michael. Quiet. Draco liked quiet. He would need to work on the girl. "How long until we need to greet the prefects?"

"I can't believe we get our own rooms! When I heard there were four heads I assumed that _someone_ would need to share! But no! Magical expansion charm and voilà no room sharing! Merlin, I love magic!" Susan ran up one set of stairs, the one with the Badger symbol above it, leaving the other three to rub at the temples, trying to sooth their steady headaches.

"Up for a game of wizards chess?" Michael asked Draco, already setting up the board.

Hermione inspected her new abode for the year. The room was large yet cozy. On the northern wall, sat the door leading to the rest of the castle, flanked on either side by floor to ceiling bookshelves. _She must inspect their contents closer_. In the Northeastern corner, a wide archway revealed a small dining room, with a rectangular table with six chairs. On both the western and eastern walls, two alcoves with window seats jutted outwards, creating a comfortable nook for each Head. Also on the western wall, between its two windows, a grand fireplace roared away in front of four armchairs and a sofa. The southern wall curved, with four stairwells, two leading upwards and two leading downwards. From left to right, the stairwell seals read, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin.

The room was a pleasant change from her old common room. The previous room's colors had been too loud, too bold for her taste. The hardwood floors beneath her felt surprisingly warm and the lavender walls soothed her constantly-frazzled nerves. The armchairs were a deeper purple and looked oh so inviting to her fatigued body while the pure-white couch looked more formal, remind her not to spill anything on it. Each nook had a window seat large enough for two people and their books to fit comfortably, the seats were made of purple cushions and each had a plethora of white accent pillows surrounding the wall.

Confident in her knowledge of her knew surroundings, Hermione walked over to the bookshelves and began her inspection. Malfoy, meanwhile, was failing miserably at wizards chess.

Why was she being so _civil_? The question ran its way through his mind time and time again. He had tormented her for the past six year and had watched his aunt actually torture her. And yet she said not a single unkind word, granted she hadn't said many, but still, if the roles were reversed, he would have hexed her straight to hell by now.

"Gee, Malfoy. I thought you knew how to play." Michael shook his head as he took the blonde's king. "I'll chalk it up to a long day of travel. Rematch tomorrow after dinner." The other boy rose to his feet and stretched out his muscles. He turned to ascend his staircase. Just as he was almost out of sight, Malfoy called out, "Thanks, Corner."

"Anytime, Malfoy. Everyone needs a good ass whopping once in a while."


	2. Chapter 2

"Defense!" A loud voice boomed from the back of the room. The entire room turned to face the source. A tall wizard stood in the door frame. "Against." He walked through the desks, pausing beside Malfoy's desk to say, "The Dark Arts." He made his way to the front of the room, standing on the raised teaching platform, "Professor Miller. Auror of twenty years, veteran of both" A pointed glare at Malfoy, "Wizarding Wars."

He was silent. The repeat-seventh years had already progressed through the majority of their classes for the day. They had all adopted the "Let's not talk about it" mindset as half-a-dozen Slytherins had returned. This new professor was directly contradicting this policy.

"Today, we will discuss the different methods for identifying an evil wizard for not all are as easily identified as Voldemort. First, in their eyes, a shifty look, much like those of a child up to no good." A brief pause as he finished his notes of the blackboard, "Second, a general demeanor or reputation. Certain wizarding families are notorious for their wrongdoing. See the Pure-Blood Directory for that list." A quick glance at the Slytherins, all of which had family names on that list, "But the one sure fire way — Mr. Malfoy? Come up here."

Without a word Malfoy stood gracefully from his stool and walked to the front of the classroom. Upon instruction, he rolled up his shirtsleeve, first his right, then his left. A collective intake of breath was the only sound as Malfoy stood, bearing his dark mark.

"Yes, the dark mark. The only way to identify a truly evil monster. All of Voldemort's followers begged him to obtain one. Take a close look, kiddies, and know true evil when you see it." Miller held Malfoy's arm out to the class, both ensuring the students a good view and that Malfoy stood in place.

Hermione observed. It's what she did whenever faced with something new. She had heard Harry declare Malfoy a death eater, heard him talk about the dark mark, but she had always assumed Harry was allowing a schoolboy rivalry to cloud his current decisions. There was no avoiding it now as the mark stood stark against the alabaster skin of Draco Malfoy's forearm. The mark was not as black as she had seen on other Death Eaters, presumably due to Voldemort's fall, but with the contrasting skin tone, it shone proud across the classroom, the snake and the skull weaving through one another.

"Take your seat, Malfoy." Malfoy walked up the center aisle, pulling his bag from his chair, and marching out the door. "Anyone care to go after him? I don't." No one moved.

* * *

"Hey, Granger?" A body slid onto the Great Hall bench beside her.

"Zabini, right?" The dark skinned boy sat with his back to the table.

"Ya. Have you seen Malfoy at all? He wasn't in our common room…"

"Haven't seen him since Defense."

"Well if you see him…"

"I'll let him know you're looking for him."

* * *

Susan sat in the dining room. She had a free this period. She _should_ get ahead on homework, before her N.E.W.T.S. really try to demolish her. But she wasn't. Instead Susan Bones sat with her feet reclined on another chair, her assignments splayed on the table before her, reading the newest Witch Weekly.

_Slam_!

"Malfoy?" The Hufflepuff asked, catching sight of the white blonde hair storming through the common room. "Malfoy what's wrong?" He spun at the top of his stairs, "Malfoy?" She asked, her eyes wide as saucers at the sight of his mark, "Malfoy, what happened?"

"Real life happened. People don't just forget." He spun on his heel and stormed down the stairs.

* * *

"I can't believe Malfoy never came to dinner. Should we be worried?" Michael urgently asked his companion.

"He's a big boy. He can take care of himself. Plus, not all males have appetites like your own." Hermione responded, muttering their password to the suit of armor. "He has to turn up eventually."

* * *

"'Mione, it's getting late…" Michael complained, certain his dormmate would understand his concern.

"Michael, he'll show up. We don't have to mother him."

* * *

She sat alone in the darkened common room. Hermione had finisher her homework for the week and had found an enthralling book about Grindylows. She sat on the big white couch, which was surprisingly comfortable considering its formal appearance, and scanned her way down page four hundred and ninety two of her text.

"You should be asleep." A groggy voice came from the bedrooms.

"So should you." Hermione watched as Malfoy, clad _only_ in a pair of sweatpants, crossed the room to one of the windows. "Have you been down there all this time?" Against the window, she saw him nod, "Do you want to talk about what happened today?"

"There's nothing to talk about." Hermione glanced down to his left forearm; he had wrapped a piece of fabric around it, "Want another viewing?" His voice angry now, having caught her looking.

"I just…"

"You just what, Granger?" He spun toward her, advancing closer, "You wanted to _learn_. Do you think I didn't see you in class? Everyone else had the dignity to look away and yet you _gawked_ at it. Haven't you seen enough of them?" She tried to start, but his words halted her again, "You of all people should have known. You have a mark of your own." He grabbed her left arm – when had he gotten so close – and yanked up her jumper sleeve, "Glamour charm? If only that worked on mine."

"I'm sorry, Malfoy." She held his angry gaze, "Truly I am, but we both made our decisions long ago."

"We made those 'decisions' as you refer to them when we were _children._" He spat, "And for some those 'decisions' were far from voluntary." He spun and left the room. She called after him regarding his state of undress, "Wizard. I'll transfigure something."


End file.
